Take Your Pet to Work Week 2026: Dates, Preparation and Pet-friendly Office Tips

Take Your Pet to Work Week 2026 runs Monday, June 22 to Friday, June 26.

Now in its 28th year, Take Your Pet to Work Week was created with a simple idea: bring companion animals into offices, encourage pet adoption, and give workplaces a reason to celebrate the bond between people and their pets. This guide covers the 2026 dates, how to bring your pet to work, tips for remote workers, and a checklist for companies running the event.

Take Your Pet to Work Week 2026 Dates

The event always lands on the Friday after Father's Day. Father's Day 2026 falls on June 21, which puts Take Your Dog to Work Day on June 26. That pattern holds every year, so you can work out future dates without searching.

What is ‘Take Your Pet to Work Week’?

Patti Moran, founder of Pet Sitters International, launched Take Your Dog to Work Day® (TYDTWDay) in 1999, partly as a celebration of dogs and partly as a nudge toward shelter adoption. The thinking was that a coworker's dog sitting under a desk does more for pet adoption than any campaign. About 300 businesses took part that first year. The event has since spread to thousands of workplaces across the US, Canada, Australia, and many more countries.

Why Taking Your Pet to Work is Worth the Effort

The Human Animal Bond Research Institute has tracked what happens when offices open their doors to pets, and the numbers are hard to argue with.

The numbers speak for themselves. Pet-friendly offices report over 90% of staff feeling fully engaged at work, a significant jump from the 65% seen in workplaces that keep pets out. When it comes to retention, 88% of employees in pet-welcoming settings planned to stay on for the year ahead, compared to 73% in non-pet-friendly ones. A separate finding shows that 44% of pet owners would take a company's pet policy into account when weighing up a job change. 

On the health side, the National Institutes of Health has found that being around animals brings cortisol levels and blood pressure down in a measurable way, which can make a genuine difference for people working in high-stress roles.

Getting Ready: What to Do Before Taking Your Pet to the Office

Check with your employer and building management first

Your company may be on board, but if the office is in a rented building, the landlord may also need to sign off separately. This is the step most people skip and the one that tends to create problems on the day.

Ask coworkers one at a time, not via group email

A blanket message puts people with allergies or a fear of dogs in an awkward position. Cynophobia is a genuine clinical anxiety around dogs that affects around 9% of people. Many would rather not declare it to the whole team. Individual conversations make it much easier for colleagues to raise concerns privately.

Preparing pets for the workplace

Take your pet somewhere unfamiliar beforehand. About a week out, bring your pet to a café, a friend's place, or any quiet public space they have not visited before. You will quickly get a read on whether they take new environments in their stride or shut down. If it is the latter, they will be better off at home on the day.

Pack what they actually need

• Food, water, and a travel bowl
• Their bed or a familiar mat
• A toy or comfort item from home
• Collar with a current ID tag
• Your vet's number and proof of vaccinations
• Waste bags and something to clean up with
• Leash for dogs, an open carrier, and a portable litter tray for cats

Know how you would leave quickly

Before you arrive, sort out the practicalities: car access, a building pass, and someone nearby who could collect your pet if needed. If the day goes sideways, you do not want to be figuring this out on the spot.

If You Work From Home

Take Your Pet to Work Week works just as well for remote teams. Whether your office is a kitchen table or a dedicated home studio, your pet is already part of your workday. This week is a good reason to make that visible.

Dedicate a few minutes of a team call to pet introductions. It is one of those low-effort moments that lands well even with colleagues who do not own pets. Post during the week using #takeyourpettoworkweek on Instagram, LinkedIn, or X. 

Many event organizers share standout entries throughout the week. A photo of your cat occupying your keyboard tends to perform better than a posed portrait.

If you manage a team channel, a simple daily prompt keeps the energy going: Monday cat introductions, Friday dog parade. It does not take much to run.

Running It as a Company: pet-friendly office tips

A few things you should keep sorted if planning a bring your pet to office day or week:

• Get the approval from the office admin or a building manager if the office space is rented.
• Keep pet-free zones, especially in kitchen, server room, and formal meeting areas.
  
• Records of Vaccination and a signed responsibility form from the pet parent.
• Staff who have allergies or any concerns are welcome to opt out privately, without offering an explanation.
  

Take Your Pet to Work Week was founded with shelter adoption at its heart. Partnering with a local rescue, even just featuring their animals in an internal newsletter, gives the week a sense of purpose that goes beyond a fun occasion.

When to Leave Your Pet at Home

Offices can be overwhelming for pets. There is constant noise, unfamiliar faces, strange smells, and no easy way out. Some animals take it all in stride, but others genuinely struggle, and putting them through that is not fair on them or the people around them.

With dogs, signs to keep an eye on include panting that has nothing to do with heat, pacing, trembling, whining, losing interest in food, or tucking themselves away under furniture.

With cats, the clearest signals are refusing to leave the carrier, ears pinned flat, dilated pupils, a puffed or low tail, and vocalizing more than usual. Cats rarely settle into a stressful environment over time. If those signs appear early in the day, they are unlikely to improve.

Pets that have never been outside the home, animals with any history of aggression, and any pet recovering from illness should stay home regardless.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q1: When is Take Your Pet to Work Week in 2026? 

Ans: It runs from Monday, June 22 to Friday, June 26. Monday is Take Your Cat to Work Day, and Friday, June 26, is the 28th annual Take Your Dog to Work Day. The week always falls on the Friday after Father's Day.

Q2: Who started Take Your Pet to Work Week? 

Ans: Take Your Dog to Work Day was started in 1999 by Patti Moran, the founder of Pet Sitters International. The concept later grew to include Take Your Cat to Work Day and a full Take Your Pet to Work Week, opening the celebration up to all types of companion animals. All three events are officially registered trademarks of PSI.

Q3: Can I bring my cat, or is it dogs only? 

Ans: The full week is open to all companion animals. Monday is specifically dedicated to cats. Other pets can join too, though you will need your employer's approval and, depending on your building, a sign-off from management.

Q4: My company doesn't allow pets. Can I still take part? 

Ans: You can still celebrate. Post a photo of your pet at your home desk with #takeyourpettoworkweek, bring them onto a team call, or download the free event toolkit at petsit.com/toolkit to share with your HR team and start the conversation about a pet-friendly workplace policy.

Q5: How do remote workers join in? 

Ans: A pet show-and-tell on a team call works well, as does posting on LinkedIn, Instagram, or X with #takeyourpettoworkweek. A dedicated channel on Slack or Teams keeps the momentum going across all five days of the event.

Q6: What do I need to bring for my pet? 

Ans: Food, water, and a travel bowl, a bed or mat, a favorite toy, a collar with a current ID tag, vaccination records, your vet's contact, waste bags, and a leash. If your pet tends toward anxiety, something that carries your scent, like an old T-shirt, can help them settle somewhere new.